Pa eS 
Keport of Farmer and Acting Pomologist.* - 
Nearly the entire time throughout the year has been given to 
routine work in orchards and on the general farm. The employ- 
ment of and superintendence of the labor has been one of the 
duties of this department. Some of the more important work for 
the season in the line of improvement was the grading around the 
new laboratory and the laying of a vitrified tile sewer from the 
building to the creek, a distance of about sixty rods. Part of 
the way it was necessary to excavate about seven and one-half 
feet in order to secure a uniform grade. A gravel road was built 
through the orchard, extending from those already completed 
around buildings to the highway on the west of the farm and a 
turn made, giving visitors an opportunity to drive through 
orchards. 
The farm proper embracing fields south of creek not divided 
into plats for experiment has been devoted to crops best suited to 
furnish grain and forage that can be used to the greatest advan- 
tage in feeding experiment cattle and work horses. The rotation 
for the most part consists of corn, forage crops, oats and hay. 
Wheat is excluded from the rotation except for test of varieties, 
or when a failure of seeding occurs with oats, owing to drought. 
A field in sod containing eleven acres was fitted for and planted . 
to corn on June tenth and eleventh, the severe spring drought 
which prevailed through this section rendering it impossible to 
get ground in condition earlier. From the west end of this field 
twenty-one plats were laid off containing one-fourth acre each 
‘and devoted to experiments with four leading brands of fer- 
 tilizers. The results were negative in character; in no case 
did the increased yield of crop pay for the cost and appli- 
cation of the fertilizer. The field will be sown to oats in 
the spring and the after effects of the fertilizer noted. - 
*G. W. Churchill. 
